I learned that skin peeling, sore throat and mouth ulcer usually begin between Week 3 and 4 of treatment. But that wasn't exactly the case for me. My skin only started to really dry up on the final Week 7 and peeling was for a week after the treatment completed. My sore throat only started to get bad, which forced me to only take soft and bland diet, in the middle of Week 5. It lasted until the week after my treatment completed. Alhamdulilah, I didn't have any mouth ulcers.
So here's the weekly overview. But as you may heard, the treatments and side effects as well as after effects react differently on individuals.
Nurse Zuraida advised me on diet, oral and skin care as well as oral exercises from day one. I'm glad that she as well as the Radiotherapists were never tired to constantly remind me on those important rituals that I still practice.
Diet
Eat while you can! :) I was aiming to gain weight too so I wouldn't lose much later. Eat frequently and timely to manage the nausea from Chemo. I had a lot of crackers and fruits in between meals. Drink a lot of fluid to flush out toxin from the Chemo med. But at that moment, I had yet to monitor the amount I took everyday. I wasn't even careful about my diet, I took everything that gave me energy. Dr Azrif also had no restriction as long as they are healthy. But being malay/asian, pantang/restriction is better or when you're unsure. :)
Oral Care
As advised I gargled with salt water, 1/2 teaspoon to a glass of water, every 2-4 hours or after meals. It was initially more to develop a good habit in ensuring my mouth was always clean. When the mouth starts getting drier in Week 2/3, it's prone to infection that may caused by bacteria from food particles.
Skin Care
I was advised not to use any chemicals on my face down to the shoulders, where RT is done. They said, just run it with cold water and dap it with wet towel. How can I? :) So, I asked my doctor if natural/organic based product can be used. He suggested 'Simple' and Vitamin E Oil because some of his patients used it and it went well with them. I decided to still use my Himalaya facial cleanser and body soap which I believed are of natural ingredients. But this only lasted a week until I turned to cold water and wet towel only, just in case. :)
Oral Exercise
Nurse Zuraida gave me a visual diagram of oral exercises. This is again more to develop a good habit that will be useful when the mouth and throat start to get tight due to dryness, sore as well as ulcers. I heard of a patient that had lock jaw during treatment. Somewhere mid treatment, I also found it difficult and slightly painful to yawn. Sometimes, swallowing became unnatural too.
Energy
It was pretty much the same until after my first Chemo. The nausea made me want to just lie down but that was impossible because I had to get up for food or it would be worse. I also get tired easily. I went to watch Madagascar 3 and slept midway. I never slept in cinemas except when I watched Seabiscuit and PGL, they were late shows and boring. :)
TheEmoBit
I consider myself strong and practical. Even when I had a bad flu/sinusitis, I'd be up on the go. But hellowww, it's cancer! :) And the treatments were really harsh and wore me down. I was fine initially and thought I could manage it on my own until probably Week 3/4. I even searched online for cases like mine and on how they continued their normal routine. I thought, if they can then it shouldn't be a problem for me too, right? But by that weekend, I was really disappointed on how my body has gotten weak so quickly and worried that the changes would affect my loved ones, especially my 7 year old kid. I couldn't even get up to prepare a decent meal for myself then how was I suppose to care for my husband and kid. Previously, I was never keen to ask for help until it was really necessary. By that Sunday, hubs,kiddo and me moved back to my parents' because it was necessary for me to be taken care of and it's OK to let them help me.
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